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gururbrahmā gururviṣhṇuḥ gururdevo maheśhvaraḥ
guruḥ sākṣhāt paraṁ brahma tasmai śhrī gurave namaḥ
The Guru is Brahma Himself and the Guru is Vishnu too; The Guru is Maheshwar and the Guru is the God of all Gods; Know your Guru as the Supreme Brahman; Oh Guru, my salutations or namaskar to you. |
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From the Editor's Desk
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Since time immemorial, Indians have revered the ancient cultural tradition of honoring a Guru. A Guru is someone who dispels ignorance and fills the intellect with divine knowledge. We take this opportunity to celebrate Guru Purnima (on July 31st) by paying homage to our spiritual guru. The day is also called Vyas Purnima in honor of Maharshi Ved Vyas, the author of the four Vedas and the Mahabharat. In India, on Guru Purnima people express their gratitude to their spiritual Guru as well as academic scholars and teachers for the knowledge they receive.
In this issue, we describe the meaning of Guru and espouse the concept of Guru-Tatva. We present the story that describes how a woman's bhakti for her Lord and Guru, saves her life in ways that even she could not understand. Further, the story of Sananda bears testimony that a Guru always recognizes the depth of a disciple's faith. All of these stories are meant to enhance one's mental wellbeing. Finally, we share with you the procedures of Panchakarma to improve physical and mental wellbeing. This issue ends with an update on the local community events organized by the Radha-Krishna Temple of Dallas.
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Bhakti Ras
A Woman's Dash to Safety
 In a small town in India, Janaki was making a plan to run away from her house to escape her abusive husband. One day when her husband was at work, Janaki put a few very essential things in a shoulder bag and started to walk toward the bus stop. Before she could get on a bus, she saw her husband walking on the other side of the street. Janaki was very scared and started running on the opposite side. She covered her head with her
odhani (long scarf) to disguise herself. She had barely walked a block when she heard her husband yell from a short distance, "Where do you think you are going?"
Janaki did not respond and tried to glide through a crowd of people walking back and forth through the huge street fair. She ran through the booths, jugglers and performers, to the other end without being detected by her husband. Then she veered toward the grove of trees, her heart beating fast and fear gripping her entire body. She crouched behind some shrubs and waited until it was safe to step out. After about 15 minutes, Janaki's breathing returned to normal and she started thinking about how she would escape from the woods. Just then she heard her husband's voice calling her name and shouting that she would never be able to get away from him. She heard him get ready to pull the trigger of his gun. She froze and stayed in the shrubs feeling helpless and scared as the sun was setting and it was becoming dark. When he stopped yelling, she crawled forward. Janaki had gone only a few feet further when she heard the growl of a
dhole or wild dog. She was sure she was going to die one way or the other.
Janaki sat down in a small pit, closed her eyes and started thinking about God and her Guru at her presumed last moments. She visualized Krishna playing his
murali (flute). She remembered her Guruji's quotes from the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna tell Arjun, "....
maam ekam sharnam vraja" or surrender to me exclusively. Janaki started talking to the Lord. "Stay with me, Lord, as I come to you." With these thoughts she fell asleep.
When she gradually woke up, the sunlight waded through the trees and she heard loud noises of people arguing. She could not believe that she was alive and unhurt. She slowly crawled toward the source of the noise and peeked from behind the trees. A couple of cops had handcuffed her husband and were taking him away in a jeep. She waited until they drove away and then came out of the woods. She walked toward a small group of women and asked them what had happened. One woman said, "A man shot a
dhole in the woods. Because a
dhole is an endangered species, the cops took him away to prison."
Janaki closed her eyes and silently thanked God and Guru for saving her life. As Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj has said, "With God's grace, we find a Guru and the Guru's grace helps us to become one with God." These words are also illuminated in Sananda's story.
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Inspirations for Living
Meaning of Guru
 Translated literally, the word Guru means one who dispels (i.e.,
ru) the darkness (i.e.,
gu). A Guru is blessed with the capacity to drive away the destructive forces from our inner mind and infuse the intellect with constructive energy. The Guru is able to achieve such feats because of having attained the level of self-realization and spiritual mastery necessary to discipline oneself with total control of the physical senses, mental energy, and moral elements of nature. Only such an illumined Guru can dispel the darkness of others.
We can differentiate a true Guru from the pretentious ones based on many aspects. For example, a true Guru is devoid of ego and will not make self-proclamations of greatness. The true Guru will exhibit endless patience and not be angry with those who have little faith or interest in being a devotee. A true Guru will love you unconditionally and teach you to do the same. Finally, a true Guru is one who uses the divine knowledge of our sacred scriptures to enable us to abandon fear, eliminate ignorance, and obliterate despair, worry, and confusion in our mind toward the attainment of inner peace.
To benefit from the teachings of a Guru, our scriptures present a basic philosophy to help us elevate our body, mind and soul. To practice
Guru-bhakti, here are a few things to consider:
- We should have a deep and complete faith in the Guru.
- We need to abandon the ego and accept that we do not have adequate knowledge to comprehend the Lord's
leelas and only a true Guru will help us find meaning and purpose in life.
- We need to commit to serve the Guru with the body, mind and soul with the full understanding that such service is designed to teach us humility, compassion, empathy, and devotion.
There is a saying that when a student is ready to learn, a Guru miraculously appears. A Guru helps us to feel the presence of God and demystify the concept of
ananya bhakti. The next story illuminates the outcomes of such type of
bhakti.
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Bal-Mukund: Playground for Vedic Wisdom
Sananda's Guru Bhakti
Jagadguru Adi Shankaracharya had four disciples, one of whom was Sananda. Compared to other disciples, Sananda was illiterate and often had difficulty comprehending his Guru's teachings. However, he had immense faith and devotion for his Guru and listened to his discourses with undivided attention.
One day Sananda was washing his Guru's clothes on the other side of the river. When it was time for class, the other disciples requested their Guruji to get started. Adi Shankaracharya told his disciples that he would wait until Sananda returned after washing his clothes. His disciples said, "What is the need to wait for him, Guruji? He cannot understand anything you teach." Shree Shankaracharya said "Sananda may not understand but he listens with a lot of faith so I do not wish to disappoint him."
To make a point about Sananda's faith, Shankaracharya called out to him. "Sananda! Please come here." Upon hearing his Guru's words, Sananda dropped what he was doing and ran on water through the river to get to his Guruji immediately.
Legend has it that lotus flowers emerged on the surface of the river water wherever Sananda placed his feet and supported him to get to the other bank to offer obeisance to his Guru. At that time, a
stuti (verses) in sophisticated Sanskrit emanated from Sananda's mouth in praise of the Guru. The other disciples were astounded to hear the
stuti. Since that day because lotus flowers had bloomed under his feet, Sananda name changed to "Padmapada," or "the one with lotus flowers under the feet."
This story illustrates that a Guru is more concerned with the amount of faith and devotion of a student rather than the extent of his knowledge. In this issue, we celebrate our Guru and commemorate Guru Purnima by discussing the importance of mental and spiritual cleansing.
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Community Events 2015
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International Yoga Day
The Radha Krishna Temple of Dallas hosted its first and very successful outdoor Yoga Festival in Allen, Texas, on Sunday, June 21, 2015, to celebrate the International Yoga Day. This free event was jam-packed with enthusiastic participants of ranging experience levels, some of whom were participating in yoga for the first time.
While India and the whole world celebrated International Yoga Day, here in Allen, the participants were undeterred by the inclement weather that truly tested everyone's endurance. In the true spirit of yoga, participants practiced not only the physical exercise of the body but also engaged their mind and soul. They dived into an inward journey to the extent that they were unfazed by the severe rainstorm that morning. 
The unique yoga session and guided meditation encouraged everyone to discover the innumerable benefits of yoga for holistic health, covering topics from tune up of neck and shoulders, back care, improving circulation, and more.
Volunteers worked hard to make everyone feel welcome and to keep the event going smoothly in spite of the heavy and non-stop downpour. Sessions were conducted under a big tent at the Radha Krishna Temple site, where construction is currently underway for the temple. Volunteers offered light breakfast treats for participants when done with the yoga session.
Free community yoga sessions are conducted on Saturday mornings from 9:30 to 10:45 in Allen, next door to the Radha Krishna Temple site. Stay tuned and visit the community events calendar frequently and RSVP for one of the free temple programs today! http://www.radhakrishnatemple.net/up-coming-events/.
Yoga, Meditation and Lecture Series
with
Swami Mukundananda ji
It is always a treat to participate in Swamiji's Yoga, Meditation and Lecture series to absorb the spiritual knowledge, enhance physical health and wellness, and gain clarity of the mind and intellect. This summer's lecture series in the DFW metroplex are in the months of July, August and September:
 Why be spiritual in the age of science?- Why do we experience suffering, and how can we attain true happiness?
- How can we acquire pure and divine knowledge?
- Why is the mind considered the basis for bondage and liberation from this world, and how can it be conquered?
As Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj has said, "The fire of longing for Shree Krishna that develops in the heart of a devotee burns to ashes the five sheaths covering the soul. The bondage of the three modes of Maya, three kinds of karmas, and the three kinds of defects also finish automatically." Experience the yearning for achieving the highest level of spiritual bliss through Swamiji's upcoming summer events. |
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The Science of Devotion
July 25 to 31, 2015 [Frisco, TX]
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Life Transformation Series
The Art of Mind Management
August 15 to 21, 2015 [Allen, TX]
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Labor Day Retreat in Dallas: Hilton Garden Inn, Denison
Bring spirituality closer to you and your family by spending quality time to nourish the body, mind, and soul in the inspiring company of Swami Mukundananda.
- Learn the secrets of spiritual sadhana in tranquil surroundings.
- Hear and rejoice the wonderful leelas or holy pastimes of Shri Radha Krishna.
- Partake the nectar of devotional bhajans led by Swamiji.
- Participate in a quiz and win prizes.
- Clear your doubts on philosophy in a special question-answer session.
For more information contact Madhupriya Sethia at 469-524-8887 or Shreya Bhat at 469-524-8887. Please feel free to visit our website at https://www.jkyog.org. |
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Other Ongoing Community Events
From weekly satsangs and chanting groups to yoga classes and intellectual discourse, the Radha Krishna Temple of Dallas is already becoming known for its voluntary activities for the benefit the community.
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Weekly Satsangs
These satsangs truly propel one in the ocean of bhakti through a combination of prayer, singing bhajans/kirtans, viewing a video lecture, and followed by arati, and Prasad.
For local satsang information visit:
www.radhakrishnatemple.net or [email protected]. |
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Free Community
Yoga Classes
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Vishnu Sahashra
Naam Chanting
At: 4020 Sendero Trail
Plano, TX 75024
On: 1st Sat, 3 to 4 PM
Details & Registration |
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'Dollar A Day' - Pledge Continuous Support!
Donate a Dollar a Day towards the building and upkeep of the Radha Krishna temple! By donating just $1 everyday,
you'll help this noble cause!
How many of us have the opportunity and are fortunate enough to build a house for God?
Set up monthly contributions through credit card/debit card by calling: 860-605-3685 or by visiting temple website at Radha Krishna Temple of Dallas (click).
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Wellness for Life
The Benefits of Panchkarma
 In this section, we describe the process of physical cleansing of the body with
Panchkarma, which in return further enhances the functions of the mind and consciousness.
Panchkarma (i.e., five actions) describe procedures designed to cleanse the body of harmful toxins related to the tridoshas (i.e.,
vata,
pitta, and
kapha) that are associated with the five elements of nature (i.e., space, air, fire, water and earth). These procedures remove the toxins from the deep layers of tissue, allowing the body to heal from known and unknown complications.
There are five procedures in
panchkarma and need to be performed only by trained professionals in Ayurveda:
- The application of medicinal drops into the nostrils for inhalation. It is believed that the nose is an entrance into the head and removal of toxins from the head and neck can heal problems like migraine, asthma, and sinus.
- The intake of oral medication and large quantities of liquids to induce vomiting in order to cleanse the toxins accumulated in the body. This not only clears the respiratory track and related illnesses but also enhances the digestive functions and enhances related functions.
- The use of medicated enema through oils and decoctions to completely cleanse the large intestines of all toxins accumulated through the years of an unhealthy life style. It reduces or eliminates gastric disorders, kidney stones and piles, nervous system dysfunction and many other serious health problems.
- The intake of laxatives to cleanse the bowels by removing toxins piled up in the gastro-intestinal system over the years. This type of cleansing gradually decreases problems related to diseases like diabetes, hepatitis, urinary tract disorders, etc.
- The process of blood-letting or blood purification is done to eliminate all the toxins absorbed in the blood through the gastro-intestinal tract. Such pitta-related toxins cause serious disorders of the circulatory system. Through blood purification, the spleen stimulates the production of antitoxins necessary for restoring the immune system.
These
panchkarma procedures help to gain equilibrium of the body and open the mind to the development of inner strength and consciousness.
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Please provide us with your feedback and requests for the type of features you would like to read at
[email protected]
We really want to hear from you.
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Copyright © Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog 2014. All rights reserved.
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